Global Scans · UK · Weekly Summary

WHAT'S NEXT?: Achieving Brexit will dominate the UK's agenda up to and beyond 2020 with uncertainty rife until clear decisions are made on the form of Great Britain's future relationship with the EU and the rest of the world.

• [New] The heat networks sector represents a £100 billion investment opportunity for the UK, with the potential to unlock 100,000 jobs by 2050. Energy UK
• [New] Developing heat network infrastructure will bring significant economic and social benefits to the local communities they serve across the whole of the UK, as well as delivering bill savings to all customers of the energy system. Energy UK
• [New] Heat network zoning regulations in England will require 85% of heat generated in energy centers to be derived from low carbon sources from 2030. Energy UK
• [New] Heat Networks Industry Council members aim to draw £5 billion investment into new heat network infrastructure in the UK by 2030 and £17 billion by 2035, before ultimately unlocking £100 billion investment by 2050. Energy UK
• [New] Growing the heat networks sector to deliver 20% of space heating by 2050 is a £100 billion investment opportunity for the UK. Energy UK
• [New] Japan's participation in the Global Combat Air Programme alongside the United Kingdom and Italy with a defined 2035 in-service target is embedding substantial autonomous systems technology development into the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries industrial base. Persistence Market Research
• [New] As more allied nations, like Canada, acquire the P - 8 for their own Arctic surveillance operations, the close cooperation between the UK and Norway could serve as a model to deepen integration with other NATO forces. The Arctic Institute - Center for Circumpolar Security
• [New] UK Space Agency will not increase the grant value or re-allocate budget to cover higher pay rates even if actual pay increases during the project duration. GOV.UK
• [New] Climate scientists are saying the incoming Super El Nino is likely to deliver more record breaking hot weather in 2027. / UK The Guardian
• [New] The switch to EVs is expected to be the single biggest contributor to cutting UK carbon pollution in the next decade. The Guardian
• [New] Getting more EVs on the road is one of the single most important policies for cutting UK emissions and will also insulate more British motorists from paying more at the petrol pump as a result of volatile oil prices, saving billions of pounds on the British driving bill. The Guardian
• [New] British households are facing a renewed cost of living squeeze, with official figures expected to show this week that soaring energy bills drove up inflation in July to close to 3%. The Guardian
• [New] Inflation is expected to continue to rise, peaking above 3% later in 2026, as the UK economy continues to grapple with the backdrop of elevated energy prices and the effective gridlock in the strait of Hormuz. The Guardian
• [New] Assuming an average mid-sized UK company's energy usage is around 5 GWh electricity per year and 10 GWh gas per year, a combined bill could swing by £3 million per year. True Group
• [New] The Bank of England expects price rises to accelerate further in the coming months as the impact of the Iran war feeds through. ST
• [New] Energy regulator Ofgem is expecting the price cap for household energy bills in Britain to rise by 4% in October. HuffPost UK
• [New] The United States, Japan, Republic of Korea, United Kingdom, Australia, and Canada have all issued advisories regarding the risk North Korean IT workers pose to private companies, governments, and individual citizens. United States Department of State
• [New] The UK AI Security Institute has warned about frontier models showing autonomous and deceptive actions during cyber testing. TashiOS
• [New] Saab UK, quantum timing startup Aquark Technologies and the Royal Navy's Disruptive Capabilities and Technologies Office have demonstrated that a distributed Giraffe 1 X radar network can maintain a coherent air picture using quantum timing sources instead of GNSS. Inside GNSS - Global Navigation Satellite Systems Engin
• In England and Wales, temperatures will rise into the mid to high twenties Celsius and widely across east Wales, central, eastern and southern England in excess of 30 C. BBC Weather
• South-east England will be even hotter where temperatures will rise to over 30 C and possibly as high as 33 C. BBC Weather
• Several areas of England could enter drought status as public water supplies remain under increasing pressure with continued dry weather and high demand. BBC Weather
• Economists predict an increase in GDP of 0.4%, slower than the start of the year but still a robust pace. / UK financialpost

Last updated: 25 August 2026